The government only has one argument in favour of the Fiscal Treaty: If we vote NO, we will be unable to borrow money to fund public services. There will be no stability and so the ATM machines will seize up.

The government’s case comes down to access to the European Stability Mechanism fund. This is a €700 billion firewall that eurozone governments can draw on if other borrowing costs are too high.

The government only has one argument in favour of the Fiscal Treaty: If we vote NO, we will be unable to borrow money to fund public services. There will be no stability and so the ATM machines will seize up.

The government’s case comes down to access to the European Stability Mechanism fund. This is a €700 billion firewall that eurozone governments can draw on if other borrowing costs are too high.

The Campaign Against the Austerity Treaty is a group of people who have come together to argue against the treaty from a left point of view. They have launched their leaflet. which contains many good arguments for a NO vote.

From France and Holland to Slovakia and Greece, governments are falling victim to a European wide backlash against austerity. It seems no pro-austerity party is safe, with even Angela-Merkel’s Christian Democrats suffering a humiliating collapse in recent regional elections. Suddenly, it seems the debate in Europe is shifting away from austerity and towards a greater emphasis on boosting growth and creating jobs. So what is behind all this sudden talk of growth in Ireland and Europe and is the Fiscal Treaty fast becoming a dead duck?

From France and Holland to Slovakia and Greece, governments are falling victim to a European wide backlash against austerity. It seems no pro-austerity party is safe, with even Angela-Merkel’s Christian Democrats suffering a humiliating collapse in recent regional elections. Suddenly, it seems the debate in Europe is shifting away from austerity and towards a greater emphasis on boosting growth and creating jobs.

The political establishment are terrified that the wider European revolt against austerity will derail their treaty.

Their response has been to distort the message coming from France and to claim that the No side will inflict Greek style suffering on the Irish people. In both cases, the evidence points in the opposite direction.

During the election campaign Hollande explicitly stated that he would not ratify the Fiscal Treaty as it currently stands.

His newly appointed Finance Minister, Pierre Moscovici, has repeated the message: "What has been said quite clearly is that the treaty will not be ratified as is and that it must be completed with a chapter on growth, with a growth strategy,"

In the midst of all the media bluster about billions and bailouts, the most fundamental consequence of adopting the Fiscal Treaty into law is being ignored; namely the threat the Treaty poses to democracy.

In the midst of all the media bluster about billions and bailouts, the most fundamental consequence of adopting the Fiscal Treaty into law is being ignored; namely the threat the Treaty poses to democracy.

The Irish political establishment are desperately spinning a new story line – that they were for growth all along and that they welcome the election of Hollande in France.

They claim that Hollande has only demanded an additional item or a protocol to the Fiscal Treaty which would encompass growth.

This is a lie because Hollande explicitly said, “he will re-negotiate the treaty on budgetary discipline not only for France, but for the whole of Europe," during a campaign speech in Paris on Saturday (17 March), adding that the pact focuses on austerity only and does little to spur economic growth.

Hollande’s victory has also to be seen in the much wider context of a European revolt against the politics of austerity. The electoral revolt has been most dramatic in Greece, where the two main parties who backed the memorandum with the Troika have been decimated. Their vote shrunk from 77% to 33%.

The obvious reason for this referendum is to legalise through the constitution the payment to private bankers from public funds retrospectively

The obvious reason for this referendum is to legalise through the constitution the payment to private bankers from public funds retrospectively. As they are being made retrospectively these payments could never meet the normal legal requirements for the awarding contracts from public funds. They are therefore corrupt. If this happened in an African country think of the hue and cry? It is being cleverly done in the insistence that we balance the books and this can only be done by paying the bankers which will now have constitutional backing.

‘The emphasis on austerity is becoming increasingly unpopular, with opponents saying it creates a self-defeating cycle of economic stagnation leading to lower tax receipts. It has been denounced in large rallies in Greece, Spain and the Czech Republic recently, and has proved to be a losing plank in any recent European election where it was tested.’

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EUROPE VOTES AGAINST AUSTERITY

‘The emphasis on austerity is becoming increasingly unpopular, with opponents saying it creates a self-defeating cycle of economic stagnation leading to lower tax receipts. It has been denounced in large rallies in Greece, Spain and the Czech Republic recently, and has proved to be a losing plank in any recent European election where it was tested.’

Mr. Noonan's claim that a No vote "would have a negative effect on attracting more foreign companies, who already provide jobs for 250,000 workers here."

Mr. Noonan's claim that a No vote "would have a negative effect on attracting more foreign companies, who already provide jobs for 250,000 workers here." is disrespectful not only to the people but also to intelligence of those companies who invest here.